"Aaah..." Gabriel eased himself into one of the springs around town - the horses were signed in to the stables, and Gabriel paid for everyone's stay at the inn. This was a rather nice location with a generous area in the back for people of both sexes - the main inn itself was made of rare and well handled wood. The locals had told a story about some of the springs which bubbled up from underneath the town, but Gabriel was just glad to rid himself of some of these aches.
Admittedly at first he was recalcitrant about relaxing back there when he could be practicing with his sword, but Tamerin brought up a good point.
He looked back outside of the springs, the open door letting him see some older women chatting about him. A grin tugged at his mouth. When he came in wearing just his small clothes, the women had gasped and talked in hushed tones about the muscular knight, thinking he could not hear them.
"So handsome...rippling with muscles..."
"...Isn't he just the handsomest knight ever?"
"...me go talk to him? YOU go talk to him, Brenda! You've been salivating over him since..."
Tamerin, just across from him, poked Gabriel's side, and commented, "See? I knew you'd find something to enjoy in this diversion for the evening."
Gabriel stretched his back, arms, and legs, and then yawned a bit, "...If I'm ever in the area I'm stopping by here again..."
Queen Iva had always enjoyed how he had grown into a powerfully built man, one could say Gabriel had an eye for when people - especially women - were in the process of sizing him up. He looked back up at several stools out by the side of the entrance, where the men's weapons were left as they enjoyed themselves.
After all, there was no telling what might happen, and it paid to be prepared.
However as all the kinks in the trio's bodies were worked out by the steam and the water, nothing ultimately came to interrupt their time to unwind.
After getting everything together, Gabriel got dressed in his armor again and went out front to do some stargazing, considering that the back was comprised entirely of springs and ornaments.
Tamerin and Jerome went back into their rooms at the inn - both looking quite exhausted from the long day they'd had in riding out. Gabriel looked down at the sword at his side, pondering how he would undertake this task he was assigned when it was unmistakably revealed that Abaddon was responsible. King Michael was not so absolute about the borders when they needed to expand...
He let out a breath and then looked around...by chance seeing what looked like some drifters heading over toward the inn. Deciding this was an apt opportunity to get his ear to the ground around here about any goings on, Gabriel ran over. "Excuse me, Sirs!"
They seemed to tilt to look at him as he came running over, and the closer Gabriel got to the drifters the more he came to realize something was direly off. They seemed to just stand there, limply, as if puppets with the strings only most loosely assigned, and their eyes were completely rolled back in their skulls. The skin was...pale, ghastly really.
Gabriel brought a hand down to his sword.
Sparks flew off of Arondight as he shifted his stance ever so slightly.
Then one of the drifters suddenly lunged for him, emitting a whooping, deep cry from its throat, hands displaying unnaturally long fingernails, flesh receded somewhat. Gabriel had his sword in motion the very moment hostility was detected, slicing off the offending limb and putting his sword into a ready drawn posture pointing to the side.
He noted the blood was thick when he cut through the foe, and there was a smell once the limb was severed - decay.
How utterly vile, reanimated corpses.
When the corpse lunged for him again, this time Gabriel hacked off its head and put it down for good, avoiding a strike from behind by the other "drifter", in reality another of the corpses. Gabriel struck down with his sword, unleashing the ferocious thunder hammer - the lightning bolt that followed his sword down mostly incinerating the undead foe.
That was when Gabriel noticed the approach of many, many more of the "drifters" - in reality a small army of corpses.
And someone drifted out from the woods, seeming to coast along upon black mist. Gabriel immediately knew from a dire feeling in the air - this was a demon. It may resemble a beautiful woman and carry itself as such, but there was no mistaking the aura of malice carried by a servant of the Demon Lord.
Bethicia started clapping and enthusiastically dipped through the air, moving upside down and then back right side up, "That was pretty impressive! Most people aren't fast enough to adjust their reactions like that...but then, most people aren't Gabriel Dulac."
Gabriel pointed his sword up at the demon, "Identify yourself, foul darkling!"
The demoness outright chuckled outloud and said, "Well, asking a lady for her name so soon after a meeting...horny little boy, aren't you? Alright then, my name is Bethicia, a Magician and Sword Knight of the Demon Lord Lucifer."
Gabriel leaped up to try and get in a quick attack on her, swiping with his sword during the jump, but Bethicia seemed to disappear into her black mist, and then reappear out of it after he landed.
She covered her mouth, "Ohh hohoho...you're the type that loves to sink his blade in first, and ask questions later..."
That was when the Holy Spear Yggdrasoil struck, flying in from above, and Bethicia only barely avoided it, looking down at a scrape on her hand - the sole wound - as if that was more severe than it actually was. "...Rude little boy..."
Tamerin came running out - followed shortly after by Jerome, who incinerated a group of zombies approaching the inn with a wave of his flames. Resting near Gabriel's back, Tamerin said, "Heard the lightning bolt, figured it was you - what've we got?"
The Holy Spear levitated back down by Tamerin's side.
Gabriel looked around and then back up at the demon in question, "Flirtatious necromancer demon of ill repute. Probably doesn't want us to get to Abaddon."
That outright made Bethicia break down laughing, drawing the attention of all three young men, "...You think...you think my lord is working with Abaddon? What a funny thing to say! It seems protectionism has its downsides, you thick boys don't know ANYTHING going on these days..."
Arondight flashing with lightning, Gabriel demanded in a harsh tone, "Do not lie to me, you vile creature! Everything points toward---"
Bethicia interrupted, "Then maybe you should consider there's a lot of things going on you just...don't...know...about?" Drawing out the emphasis on the latter part of her sentence, she seemed to be drawing something in the air with one hand.
Gabriel finally just slashed once at the air, sending a bolt of lightning flying at Bethicia...which was met by what looked like a large coffin emerging from the air itself, the electric force quickly breaking off.
Bethicia yawned, "I'll be honest, I'm not the combatant type like Belial or Beelzebub...probably can't take you feisty boys on myself. So. I'm going to summon someone up from the grave who...shall we say, can."
The coffin promptly landed with a crash severe enough to send a wave of dirt up from the impact site. Tamerin and Jerome both acted - Tamerin spinning Yggdrasoil quickly in front of himself, while Jerome made a wall of fire. Gabriel simply slashed right through the wave of dust with Arondight.
Then the coffin's lid slowly slid off, and a single person stepped out.
Gabriel's eyes widened in horror, his hands tensing and releasing around Arondight, sweat freely dripping down his face - Jerome was having a similar but deliberately less severe reaction to the armored person who stepped out of the coffin.
Tamerin simply steeled himself, knowing this person was probably...very strong.
Standing there before the assembled men...was King Jaime, clad in his armor and with a perfect duplicate formed of Excalibur, though with a telltale mark at the hilt that identified it as a mere forgery. His eyes were blank and empty, his mouth open and constantly letting out a pained moan.
Bethicia commented one last time as she started to fly up higher, "Yes, this is your dear fallen King - and just as well, a monument to all of your sins."